Picking Up The Pieces
by Don't Touch Me I'm Feeling
Summary: AU: When an amnesiac is brought into the station with no way of knowing how she got there, Detective Natsu Dragneel has to help her pick up the pieces. But when she was involved in a crime they didn't know about, how was he supposed to keep her safe and solve the case at the same time? Especially when she was involved in said crime?
1. Chapter 1

_**xX Picking Up the Pieces Xx**_

 _ **Xx Chapter 1: What Do We Do With Her? xX**_

* * *

Natsu and Gray stood on the other side of the window, watching the woman inside the room.

"So what's wrong with her?" the pink-haired man asked.

"She's an amnesiac," the other responded.

"Sucks."

"Yeah."

Silence.

Rewind.

The woman in the room was identified to be Lucy. Just Lucy, for she couldn't remember her last name. She had blonde hair caked with dirt and other stuff reaching to the top of her waist, wide, chocolate brown eyes, and plump lips, which Natsu was decidedly _not_ looking at.

They were chapped and blue, from being out in the cold rain for who knows how long.

Apparently, she was found sitting in some dirty alley in a tattered pink sundress, staring off into space with lifeless, cold eyes. Her forehead had been bleeding and bruised, showing she had been hit with a blunt object and most likely knocked unconscious. She was awake when Cana had stumbled past her, muttering something about 'being sorry'.

When questioned, they found out she hadn't remembered anything besides her first name.

Poor sod.

Currently, she was wrapped in a large police jacket that brushed past her mid thigh - that sundress was trashed - and large, baggy sweatpants. Her shoulders hunched forward, making herself seem smaller than she was, as their ace interrogator, Mirajane, pried into her mind. Her eyes stared deeply at her hands, which were twisting together in her lap, as she nodded slowly and shook her head sharply.

 _"I hate to ask you again, Miss_ _Lucy,"_ they heard Mira ask through the speakers, _"but are you absolutely sure you can't remember anything?"_

The blonde nodded.

 _"Not where you come from?"_

She shook her head.

 _"And relatives?"_

She shook her head once more, and Mira leaned back, looking at the window. She made eye contact with Natsu through the glass - how did she know where he was? - and shrugged.

Why did she look at him? He sure as shit didn't know what to do in these situations. All he was sent out to do was catch criminals and pray he didn't destroy anything in the process.

And play with fire, because he really, really liked fire.

Mira leaned forward and placed her hand on the center of the table. _"I am going to talk to my colleagues to see what we can do to help you, Miss Lucy. I will be right back. Please try and see if you can remember anything."_ The blonde girl nodded as Mira stood, making her way to the door and closing it behind her.

The white-haired beauty sighed before giving Natsu and Gray a look.

"No," they said.

"Come on," Mira said, whining slightly.

"No," they repeated.

"She won't talk to me, not a word! Maybe one of you guys can get her to-"

"No," they said.

Mira sighed. "The one time you agree without a fight is when an interrogation is involved. You guys are too alike."

The boys shifted.

Natsu hated interrogations.

Something about them made him feel dirty. He hated intimidating people into confessing. He hated being sweet enough to make them confess. He didn't do well on either side, and it often made him look like a fool.

Well, he was a fool, but that was of his own choice. Interrogations made him look stupid for no reason.

The few times he was put in the position, he ended up getting spit on, his foot smashed, being yelled at, and having to face a lot of tears. Natsu hated dealing with crying people.

And he had a feeling that woman in there would start crying soon.

But...

Natsu sighed and moved into the enclosed room, shutting the door softly behind him.

He didn't sit down, he wasn't going to be in there long. He just wanted to try, and if he made progress, well, he could shove it in Mira's face later at the risk of losing only one finger this time.

So he removed his gun holster, handcuffs and his cell phone, placing it all on the metal table, leaning on it to give him a casual look. The girl - Lucy, he needed to call her Lucy - looked up at him.

Her eyes were brown, the color of rich soil, or chocolate if he wanted to be sweet. They were large too, staring up at him almost innocently. But being a detective came with certain skills.

In those eyes, he saw fear, confusion, nervousness, was that relief in there too? Her mouth opened slightly as she took a breath - _look away Natsu_ \- and her cheeks started gaining a bit of color from her pale complexion before. She was getting warmer, that was good.

"Yo."

She stared.

Then started crying.

Fucking-

"I didn't even start saying anything yet! Only one word!" he shouted, throwing his hands up in frustration. She flinched and then let out a soft sob, moving her hands up to wipe at the falling tears.

"I-I'm sorry," she said, and Natsu paused, looking at her. She had spoke, saying something other than her name. Granted, she had said 'I'm sorry' when Cana had found her, but they were still words. More than Mira had received anyway. "I'm so sorry..."

Natsu waved his hands, trying to calm her down without touching her. "You shouldn't be sorry. _I'm_ the one who's sorry, I shouldn't have exploded like that."

But in his defense, she shouldn't have started crying.

She shook her head, inhaling shakily, wiping the rest of the tears from her face before more came coursing down. "I-I haven't been much help. I'm sorry, I can't remember anything and you..."

"And I?"

"...Have pink hair."

Natsu scowled, and she flinched.

"It's salmon."

"It's...It's salmon."

"Damn right."

They descended into silence. Natsu staring at her and her staring at her hands. It was uncomfortable and tense. The detective scratched the back of his head.

"So...you're sure you can't remember anything? Anything at all?" he pushed.

"...blood."

"Huh?"

She shut her mouth again, and Natsu scrambled to kneel beside her. "Come on, you just said something! Blood? You said blood. Whose blood was it?"

She remained silent, and he was beginning to get desperate. "Come on Lucy - Miss Lucy. You've come so far, you gotta keep going! This could help us figure out who hurt you!" Lucy squeezed her eyes shut and Natsu practically begged. "Whose blood was it Miss Lucy?"

"...I don't know."

He deflated, quite literally. His shoulders sagged and he flopped back to sit on the floor, his eyes staring at the ceiling blankly.

So close, so damn close to getting one clue, and now they were back to square one. It was wrong to be irritated at an amnesiac, but he wasn't the most patient person, and this whole thing was testing his nerves.

Mira was supposed to be doing this, not him. Gray was supposed to try this, not him. Levy could do this, not _him_. So why the hell was he even sitting in this room with her?

He heard a harsh knock on the one-way window, and he looked at it even though he couldn't see what was on the other side. He shrugged, knowing they could see it.

"Your hair reminded me of blood," Lucy whispered. Natsu chuckled wryly. "I remember seeing blood in water, someone washing their hands, turning the liquid pink." Her eyes glazed over. "Burning, everything was burning. I can't breathe, so much smoke, but he can't get the blood off. He won't leave until the blood is off. My throat is closing up, I can taste the smoke-"

"O-Oi," Natsu interrupted when she started shaking.

"We need to get out, but he won't leave. Sorry, he's so sorry, I'm so sorry. We need to go, let's go! Not until he gets the blood off, he says! Hurry up! Blackness." She choked on a sob, lifting her hands to her mouth, squeezing her eyes shut. Natsu just stared.

What the...hell was that shit?

"H-He knocked me out," she said over her tears.

"Who did Lucy? Who knocked you out?" he asked softly, and she shook her head.

"I don't know..."

And back to square one.

But still progress.

"You don't know if he is alive?" 'He' was obviously the one who hit her, but this mystery man might've been involved in something more sinister. They need to apprehend him, question him, see what he's been up to.

If only she could remember. But if he was still alive...

"I don't know..."

Well shit.

Natsu stood up and made his way out of the room without another word to her. Mira, Gray, Erza, Levy, and Jellal were staring at him with something equivalent to shock. He tried to figure out when the other three came in.

"She-"

"We heard," Erza cut him off, crossing her arms. "Your hair triggered a memory Natsu."

"I bet yours would have triggered more," he grumbled.

"I'm not willing to test that." The redhead tapped her foot, looking at the sobbing blonde in the small room. Natsu shifted.

Now what? He had gotten more information than Mira, and now they knew there was a possible homicide and arson involved. Lucy - _Miss_ Lucy was obvious a witness in a crime they had yet to find out about. A witness, accomplice, suspect, and amnesiac.

She had a lot hanging over her head, and they couldn't let her go on her merry way like they had planned.

Natsu scowled.

"So what do we do with her?"

"Well it seems like the injury wasn't what caused her amnesia," Levy said, tapping into her medical mind. He could practically see the gears turning in her head, and, not for the first time, he wished he could read minds. He knew she was thinking about something, and he knew it wouldn't be beneficial to him.

It never was.

"Retrograde amnesia," the tiny doctor said, cupping her chin, "a loss of memory-access to events that occurred, or information that was learned, before an injury or the onset of a disease. RA is often temporally graded, consistent with Ribot's Law: subjects are more likely to lose recent memories that are closer to the traumatic incident than more remote memories."

"Great, now put that in a way that doesn't make my brain melt," Natsu said.

"Scary event, forget it, literally," Mira clarified with a smile.

"Much better."

"So her memories will come back eventually?" Erza asked.

"A scan would help, but from seeing what just happened, most likely," Jellal said. It was weird hearing him talk. Usually he was locked in his lab like the creepy scientist he was, and when he came out, Erza was the only one he spoke to.

Made sense, Natsu thought, since she was his wife and all.

Although, scuttlebutt said they were having issues...

Oh, gossip. What was happening to him?

"So...that didn't answer the question," Gray said, jerking his thumb at the window behind him. "She's obviously a witness, so we can't send her off. But we can't keep her here in that condition. So...now what?"

Natsu hated that Gray was thinking the same thing. Asshole.

"Well there's a possible chance she could be in danger," Erza said. "She's alive, she witnessed a crime, and though it didn't sound like the man she was with wanted to kill her, others could be after her. She needs to be in protective custody of someone...capable..."

Slowly, everyone's eyes slid to him.

Oh hell. The fuck. No.

"No," he said.

"You _did_ get her to talk..." Levy said.

"No."

"Maybe you could help her remember," Jellal added.

"No."

"You're strong enough to protect her if it comes to that," Erza threw in.

"No."

"I'm glad it's not me," Gray snickered.

"Shut the fuck up."

"Then it's settled!" Mira clapped, and Natsu briefly forgot she was in the room. "Natsu will be her caretaker!"

He hated his life.

* * *

1\. So this has been in my head (and documents) for a while now. I like it.

2\. All Nasty-kun's POV because I can't write from an amnesiac's POV.

3\. I feel bad that I haven't put out content from either story for a while since I'm recovering (from an accident, those of you who don't know) so take this until I get working on _Talking Body_.

4\. Screw this cast because ITS HARD TO TYPE.

5\. OOC? Fuck it. I don't care. I like realistic characters, so take realistic characters. Plot? Yes. Cursing? You can bet your ass. Smut? Not telling, mostly because I don't know. Continue? Oh hell yes because I like this a lot.


	2. Chapter 2

_**xX Picking Up The Pieces Xx**_

 _ **Xx Chapter 2: So This Is My Home... xX**_

* * *

It was awkward, to say the least.

She didn't speak, only stared at her hands, picking at her manicure as he drove to his house. Natsu didn't even try to spark up a conversation either for fear she would either close herself off more than she was now, or she would remember something and they would have to go back to the station.

He was fucking tired, and didn't feel like doing that shit, so he stayed quiet.

Which was odd, considering he never shut up.

When they pulled up to his little apartment, climbed the three thousand stairs (or what felt like three thousand to his charge, for she was panting like she spent weeks in a desert) he wasted no time in pulling off the key taped to his door underneath a sign that said 'this is the key'. Lucy tilted her head with a confused sound. He looked at her.

"What?"

"Why would you tape your house key to your door?" she asked, and he shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Because they could use it to rob your place!"

"Nah," he said, unlocking his door and pushing it open. "People are too smart, so they'll think it's a trick and look under the mat or in the light or some shit like that. You wanna hide something? Put it in plain sight."

"But what if they find out it's the actual key?" Lucy asked, and removed her shoes when he took off his own.

"It's not like I have shit for them to take," the detective answered. And it was true. He only had a couch, a small TV, a coffee table, and two nightstands in his living room. No knickknacks or plants, no figurines, his pictures were hidden in his bedroom, and a mean ass cat, who was now clawing at the bottom of his trousers. The most expensive thing in his place (not counting the appliances) had to be all of the groceries in his fridge and cabinets.

He only ate name-brand foods. He didn't fuck with that generic shit.

He grabbed onto her sleeve, detaching his blue feline from his pants and shoving him into her arms. Happy needed to get used to her if she was going to be staying there. "That's Happy. He's a little shit." The cat hissed.

Lucy held him at arms length, staring him in his big eyes and blinking her own. "...why's he-"

"Blue? Long story short, don't make bets and don't trust your friends. They're little shits too." She pulled him back to her chest. "He used to be a nice orange until I gave him to Gajeel for a day. Motherfucker." She gasped, and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, I'll try to manage the shit that I say." She gasped again. "Shit, I'm sorry! Shit! Goddammit - you know what? Fuck it."

She giggled, and he grinned. Placing his hand on the small of her back, he pushed her into the living room, gesturing to the dull room.

"It certainly has character," Lucy grumbled sarcastically. Her eyes widened, and she looked at him before covering her mouth. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it offensively!"

He waved the apology away. "It's fine. I agree with you, it is boring, but only because I'm practically never here. Work and all that." She nodded, and he noticed Happy took an immediate liking to her. "If I could, I'd decorate this place with bright flames and stuff like that! Clutter and bright stuff describe me. This place just feels cold and lonely, not me at all, ya know?" Lucy nodded again with a small smile, and he pushed her into the kitchen. "This is where I eat of course. Here are the plates, cups, forks are in this drawer, and knives, in case you need to cut a bitch, are in this one here. Don't worry about food, I always keep this place stocked up. I eat a lot."

He all but dragged her to the bathroom. "Piss and wash yourself in this room here. We can go to the store tomorrow and buy you your own body wash, shampoo, toothbrush, clothes and all that good stuff. Toilet paper and towels are under here, toothpaste and medicine are behind the mirror. Loofah is on the shower handle because all real men use loofahs. Don't worry, it's new and unused, just bought it yesterday."

This time he pushed her to his bedroom and shoved her inside. All that was in there was a bed, two nightstands on either side and a small radio/alarm clock. A picture of his father and him as child rested on one nightstand, and a picture of his friends sat on the windowsill. "You'll be sleeping in here. That's obviously the bed and you'll be sleeping on that."

"What about you?" Lucy asked, looking up at him. "This is your room, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I got the couch for the night."

"But-"

"Nope! Ain't hearing it today. You're sleeping on the bed whether you like it or not. Deal with it." She pouted and he grinned. "Wanna shower?"

"That'd be nice..."

He walked over to his closet and yanked out a shirt and a pair of shorts, tossing them in her general direction. She caught them without dropping Happy, and he idly thought she was agile. "Remember where the towels are?"

"Under the sink?"

"You got it. Go ahead and hop in, I'm gonna make a few calls and be right back okay?" She nodded, and he saw her shaking slightly.

"Where will you be?" she asked quietly, and he almost had to strain his ears to hear her. Lucy was practically clutching Happy to her chest. "You won't leave me alone, right?"

He raised an eyebrow at her actions. "No...I'll just be right outside." She nodded, more to herself than in response to his words. Natsu frowned. "Right out front, okay? No one will get past me."

This time, she nodded more firmly, reassured by his words. Something made her feel uneasy, and he doubted that she heard the conversation in the station.

"I...Thank you for letting me stay here. I don't mean to be a burden."

To be honest, she was a burden. He wasn't used to sharing his space, especially with a woman, but she was a special case. That special case being amnesia, and not knowing where she lived. He still didn't understand why she couldn't stay with Mira or Erza or Levy, someone who wasn't him, but it was too late to change it now. Natsu shook his head and grinned.

"Nah, it's fine. You cook?"

She nodded hesitantly. "I think so. I recalled being able to make some dishes while we were in the car..."

The information was minuscule, but it was still progress nonetheless. "Then that's how you'll repay me. I want to eat something good, so all you have to do is cook, alright?" She nodded again, more enthusiastically this time, and his grin widened. "Now that that's settled, go shower. Shout really loudly if you need anything, my neighbors won't care. I scream all the time and they don't do shit." He opened his mouth to demonstrate, but Lucy just giggled.

"Please don't! I'll just take your word for it," she said, moving from the door towards the bathroom. She popped her head back in a moment later, smiling. "I really mean it. Thank you. It's...hard not remembering anything, and I'm glad you're not treating me any differently than a person with their memories. I really appreciate it, you feel like a friend already."

"Good, because that's what I was going for. I hate being awkward." She laughed softly and looked at him with a fond expression before heading to the bathroom once more. He waited until he heard the shower start before going outside and whipping out his phone, immediately calling Mira.

The sweet lilt of her voice graced his ears (look at him, being all poetic and shit) and he spoke first. "I need bras."

 _"Natsu...What on earthl_ _and do you...is this some kind of hobby I need to know about?"_

"No! Not for me, Lucy needs them. And panties. And shirts. And pants. Do girls wear scarves? And scarves. Hats? And hats. And socks. Some shoes would be nice. Do they still sell corsets? Pick up a few of them too. How about-"

 _"Natsu, calm down. You say Lucy needs clothes?"_

"Well seeing as how all she had was that sundress, and that's being used for evidence and then being trashed because it's all tore up and shit, she needs to wear something other than my old gymshorts and a maybe-clean shirt."

 _"Natsu, what have I told you about washing your clothes?"_

"To wash them?"

 _"And what didn't you do?"_

"Wash them?"

 _"Exactly. You have a lady in your house now, and it's prudent to be as clean as possible. You don't want her to think you're a slob, right?"_

"Frankly, I don't care-"

 _"You don't want her to think you're a slob. Right?"_

He could hear the threatening tone, and immediately changed his own. "No ma'am."

 _"Good boy. How about I take Lucy shopping tomorrow, and you work on cleaning the dust from the corners of your living room, okay? And for the love of all that is holy, clean Happy's litter box."_

"Maybe. Thanks Mira! You're doing me a huge favor. I'll tell her to be ready by two!" He hung up before he heard her response, and quickly went inside.

It was odd, seeing a girl wearing his old clothes. But somehow, she made them look good. The shorts brushed past her knees, emphasizing how small her calves were. The shirt touched past her hips and settled somewhere around mid-thigh. Her hair was wet and fell past her shoulders and down to her mid back, dampening the fabric underneath it.

She looked...good. Cleaner, he meant.

Very, very clean. And clean was good. Therefore meaning she looked good.

Natsu cleared his throat. "Feel better?"

"Much better," she sighed. "I needed that, thank you. I hope you don't mind, I used your shampoo. And the purple loofah you were telling me about." She grinned, and he chuckled.

"it's yours now, so use it as much as you like." He tapped his phone. "Just got off the phone with Mira, the white-haired woman you were talking to at the station. She'll be talking you shopping tomorrow to get you some things since I don't know a thing about what girls like. That okay with you?"

Lucy pursed her lips and Natsu tilted his head in confusion. "You mean you won't be coming with?"

"Nah, she told me I have to worry about cleaning my walls. Why?"

The blonde rubbed her shoulders, as if trying to wipe something off. "I just feel like...someone's watching me. Like I'm not really safe..."

Well that was a problem. She shouldn't be feeling that way when she was in a house, the place of a cop no less. Erza was right in that she was most likely in danger, but then again, maybe Lucy was just imagining things. Natsu wouldn't entertain either idea until he had more evidence to support the claim.

Shit, Natsu mentally cursed. He was actually doing his job.

Time to fix that.

"Just sleep it off. Maybe the feeling will go away by tomorrow, and if it's still there, Mira knows how to protect herself and others. You'll be safe with her."

Lucy still looked reluctant, but she nodded and fiddled with the hem of the shirt she was sporting. "I...Thank you again for housing me."

"Wasn't really my choice," he grumbled, but then perked up. "But it's no problem. Just go get some sleep since we'll both be busy. See you tomorrow."

She nodded again, a small, shy smile gracing her face before she backed into the bedroom and shut the door with a soft click. Natsu flopped on the couch, face deep in the cushions.

God. Dammit.

* * *

1\. I am currently upside down in my chair because I very nearly gave up on this chapter. But it's here, so take it.

2\. You know the world is ending when Arizona gets more and more rain. Like what is this shit?

3\. I don't know how or why, but my dog pissed on my little cousin. I'm laughing so hard. Hodges is a big ass dog, and my cousin is small. Did he confuse him with a tree or something? Like why did Jay just stand there and take it? He comes walking into my room, arms out like he's perched on the cross and goes "Book, Hodges piss on me." Oh God my ribs hurt.

4\. Yes. He calls me Book. I do not expect you all to call me that as well.

5\. I would go on and on about why he's not being delicate with her in her condition, but since when has Nasty been delicate? Exactly. Plus I highly doubt Lucy would want to be treated like a child when she has amnesia. I sure as hell don't. But whatever, complain if you want. Makes no different to me.

6\. Fuck humidity.

7\. Just drop a review and explain to me why dogs pissing on kids is so funny to me. Clyde, go bathe him. I'm injured.


End file.
